Welcome!

I hope that you have (or will) enjoy my latest book, Jewish Albuquerque. My own family's story in Albuquerque began about 1912 when two great uncles arrived from England by way of Salt Lake City. The two brothers, David and Louis Meyer, established a men's clothing shop in downtown Albuquerque and helped to found Congregation B'nai Israel. Part of the adventure of writing and researching the book was uncovering my own history. I hope that Jewish Albuquerque brings back good memories, encourages conversation and most of all, serves as a catalyst for you to uncover your own family stories. 2012 was New Mexico's centennial anniversary of statehood! Read my article about my relatives who arrived in Albuquerque at that time in Tablet Magazine. http://www.tabletmag.com/author/naomi-sandweiss/

Meyer brothers approx. 1909

Jewish Albuquerque

Albuquerque seems an unusual place for Jewish immigrants to settle. Yet long before New Mexico statehood in 1912, Jewish settlers had make their homes in the high desert town. From launching businesses along Central Avenue to establishing the Indian Trading Room at the famed Alvarado Hotel and founding Rt. 66 tourist establishments, Jewish residents partnered with their neighbors to boost Albuquerque's plentiful assets. Along the way, community members built Jewish organizations that made their mark upon the larger Albuquerque community. Today, there is a thriving modern community and a rich history of Jewish involvement in New Mexico. In fact, the first mayor of Albuquerque, Henry Jaffa, was Jewish. Modern Albuquerque has four Jewish congregations, a Jewish Federation and JCC, and a Jewish day school. Jewish residents make up about 1% of the population.

Comments about Jewish Albuquerque 1860-1960:"Big cities aren’t necessarily more conducive to Jews’ comfort and
success than smaller ones; it took until last week for Chicago to elect a
Jewish mayor,
but Albuquerque did so 136 years ago. In fact, Henry Jaffa was the very
first person elected to that office, and his successor was Jewish, too.
Naomi Sandweiss covers the stories of these businessmen-cum-politicians
and other tidbits of local history, while also including 200 period
photographs in Jewish Albuquerque: 1860-1960
(Arcadia, March)." Josh Lambert, Tablet Magazine, 2/28/2011